Legalizing marijuana: Borders present challenge

— SMOKESCREEN: Washington Gov. Jay Inslee insists there are ways to prevent bulk smuggling of the state’s newest cash crop — Marijuana — including digitally tracking it to ensure it goes to the stores where it is sold.

— PIPE DREAM? With sales set to begin later this year, Inslee hopes to be a good neighbor and keep vanloads of marijuana from cruising into Idaho, Oregon and other states where it’s still illegal.

— LEGAL HIGH: Inslee is trying to persuade U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder not to sue to block Washington from licensing pot growers, processors and sellers.

Associated PressTue Jan 29, 2013 10:13 AM

SEATTLE — The first two U.S. states to legalize marijuana use are finding it will be difficult to keep the drug from moving onto the black market or into other states, especially as pot remains illegal under federal law.

So far, no one is suggesting checkpoints or fences to keep Washington state’s newly legal marijuana within its borders. But Gov. Jay Inslee insists there are other ways, including digitally tracking the drug to ensure that it goes from where it is grown to where it is sold.

With sales set to begin later this year, he hopes to be a good neighbor and keep vanloads of premium, legal pot from cruising into Idaho, Oregon and other states that don’t want people getting stoned for fun.

It’s not just about generating goodwill with neighbors. Inslee is trying to persuade U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder not to sue to block the state from licensing pot growers, processors and sellers.

Colorado, where voters last year also legalized its use, already has intensive rules aimed at keeping its medical marijuana market in line, including the digital tracking of cannabis, bar codes on every plant, surveillance video and manifests of all legal pot shipments.

But law enforcement officials say marijuana from Colorado’s dispensaries often makes its way to the black market, and even the head of the Colorado agency charged with tracking the medical pot industry suggests no one should copy its measures. The agency has been beset by money problems and had to cut many of its investigators.

Washington and Colorado both have systems of state-licensed growers, processors and retail stores where adults over 21 can walk in and buy up to an ounce (28 grams) of heavily taxed cannabis.

Both states are working to develop rules for the emerging pot industry.

The Obama administration could sue to block the legal markets from operating, on the grounds that actively regulating an illegal substance conflicts with federal drug law. The Justice Department is reviewing the laws but has given no signals about its plans.

Part of the DOJ’s political calculus in deciding whether to sue is likely to be how well the department believes the two states can keep the legal weed within their borders.

Alison Holcomb, who led Washington’s legal pot campaign, said the first step is for the state to figure out how much marijuana should be produced, and then grant licenses accordingly.

But even if the state can prevent bulk marijuana from being diverted, there’s nothing to keep customers from walking into multiple stores, or returning to the same store, to collect more than their limit. Some traffickers could recruit many people to buy the drug for them.

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